Hebei province, a major agricultural hub and the capital's closest neighbor, has strengthened its role as Beijing's top vegetable supplier, providing over 40 percent of the capital's market demand.

To ensure stable and fresh supply throughout the year, Beijing and Hebei have jointly built 180 vegetable production bases in areas surrounding Beijing.

These bases, such as the colorful pepper farm in Shangyi county, Zhangjiakou, supply tons of fresh vegetables daily to Beijing, with some reaching supermarkets within hours after harvest.

Hebei's vegetable output reaches nearly 200,000 metric tons per day in summer and 100,000 tons in winter, supporting a year-round supply system, according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of Hebei province.

As part of efforts to enhance food quality and reduce waste, Hebei has been promoting Jingcai, or "clean vegetable" that are sent directly to Beijing's markets and stores.

Hebei Jingcai covers vegetables, fruits, meats, eggs and aquatic products that are selected, cleaned, cut and packaged according to food quality standards. It is a quality trademark for fresh agricultural produce from Hebei that undergo basic processing before being sold.

For example, Shunzhai Melon and Vegetable Planting Professional Cooperative in Gu'an county, Langfang supplies over 30,000 tons of refined vegetables annually to Beijing, most of which are preprocessed Jingcai.

The province has also established standardized production bases, improved cold-chain logistics, and a one-hour fresh vegetable supply chain to serve the Beijing-Tianjin areas.

Hebei continues to expand its direct supply capacity and market presence in Beijing with ongoing projects, including high-quality vegetable industry demonstration zones in Hengshui and Cangzhou cities.